kincaid 0 Posted May 15, 2003 Share Posted May 15, 2003 I have skied for 10 years now and never tried snowboarding, but I must admit that I am curious. Do you see it as all being part of the same happy family, or something rather different? Sorry for being so ignorant on the subject. Thanks kincaid. Link to post Share on other sites
jared 0 Posted May 15, 2003 Share Posted May 15, 2003 the ppl that see it as one big happy family, are. and the ones that don't are either in the cafe talking about it, wearing spandex, are o11, are over 45 or enjoying one of their three yearly visits to the snow. Link to post Share on other sites
Ocean11 0 Posted May 15, 2003 Share Posted May 15, 2003 That's the 'young skier's' perspective that jared has given you there. This snowboarder happens to think that beyond the fact that they're both done on snow, they're originally completely different. Different roots, different style, different motivation. It was only when I was finally persuaded how different the two were that I considered trying it. But, in large part due to boarder envy and the survival instincts of young skiers, skiing is moving closer to boarding in nearly every way, and as boarding goes mainstream and as mainstream is still 'skiing' (ski companies, ski resorts) to a large extent, then boarding is moving in that direction a bit too. Link to post Share on other sites
miteyak 0 Posted May 15, 2003 Share Posted May 15, 2003 No-one who's into the activity rather than the image gives a damn ... One big happy family ... Link to post Share on other sites
Ocean11 0 Posted May 15, 2003 Share Posted May 15, 2003 See? Everybody who skis says the same thing. But it won't be one big happy family until the boot is on the other foot. It has nothing to do with superficial images at all, and everything to do with what you're allowed to do, by whom. While systems like they have at 'Malnuma' exist, they'll continue to be a difference. Skiers like to close their eyes to this and spout platitudes, while they ride their nice new fat powder skis (where did they get the idea for that?) Link to post Share on other sites
miteyak 0 Posted May 15, 2003 Share Posted May 15, 2003 I'm a snowboarder, first and foremost... Oh, and more recently a telemarker ... Never been on a pair of downhill skis in my life, unless you count the dry ski slope at Plas-y-brehnan... Link to post Share on other sites
Ocean11 0 Posted May 16, 2003 Share Posted May 16, 2003 Are you though miteyak? I had the impression that you were a teleskier first and foremost... I'm glad that skiing is getting out of the stuffy old mould that it was in, and I love watching the jumps that skiers do. I like riding with skiers too, and would even like to give it a go myself these days. But I think too many of the old guard bog-standard skiers still have too much influence, and I'd love to see it eroded quickly. Link to post Share on other sites
miteyak 0 Posted May 16, 2003 Share Posted May 16, 2003 The real point here is that I always snowboard at any place I go, and my girl only snowboards, so I feel every prejudice a boarder does. Lets face it O11, I have the helmet issue, you have the skier one ... keep yer head low and keep charging Link to post Share on other sites
Ocean11 0 Posted May 16, 2003 Share Posted May 16, 2003 Quote: Originally posted by miteyak: Lets face it O11, I have the helmet issue, you have the skier one ... keep yer head low and keep charging Rock on mate! (That 45 year old skier at Arai was prolly a bit squiffy from good ji-biru. Even if he had been wearing a helmet, skiing off the cliff woulda got him.) Link to post Share on other sites
veronica 2 Posted May 16, 2003 Share Posted May 16, 2003 Part of same! Link to post Share on other sites
Fattwins 0 Posted May 16, 2003 Share Posted May 16, 2003 When I worked at a ski resort in BC it didnt seem like a big deal. In Japan snowboarding is still fresh so sometimes its seems likea big deal. Heres the thing.. You slide on snow, you do it for yourself and to enjoy nature and your friends, its a challenge at any level etc. when I talk to my boarding buddies we are of like minds most of the time. Link to post Share on other sites
big-will 7 Posted May 16, 2003 Share Posted May 16, 2003 I thought snowboarding was the majority thing now, skiing the minority - and the swing starting to swing the other way in terms of the "in thing". Or maybe not. Link to post Share on other sites
Ocean11 0 Posted May 16, 2003 Share Posted May 16, 2003 Boarding may indeed be the majority thing, but the 'Management' haven't taken that 'on board' yet. Link to post Share on other sites
jared 0 Posted May 16, 2003 Share Posted May 16, 2003 I'm going to try not get into a debate here cos you know what they say about argueing in a forum on the internet and the special olympics but... Quote: "Different roots, different style, different motivation." I have to disagree with different roots - the original snowboarders were skiers wanting to try something a bit different - skiing IS snowboardings roots. I'll give you different style, that's what snowboarding is a different style of sliding down the hill. I'm gonna have to call you on different motivation, isn't everyone just trying to have fun? So what we are left with is completely different of part of the same? Well we have the same roots, the same motivations just a different style. I have a sneaky susspition that this conversation isnt going to be any more productive than the male being a subset of female one so I might just retire. Link to post Share on other sites
enderzero 0 Posted May 16, 2003 Share Posted May 16, 2003 I like the idea of same roots and same motivation but different style. When I am riding with friends it barely crosses my mind if they are on a board or skis. Oher than all the days I rode with just barok this year there was at least one skier with me most of the time. But that said, when we hit up mediocre conditions at Niseko the 4 boarders split up from the 2 or 3 skiers because we were into some different terrain then they were. But I think the question may be more along the lines of, "if I am a good skier, will it be easy for me to transition to snowboarding?" And the answer to that is yes...unless it isn't. It really just depends on you. If you pick it up well then maybe it had something to do with your skiing, but I have known skiers that took years to get the knack of boarding and I have known never-evers that had it down their 2nd or 3rd day. Good luck man. Link to post Share on other sites
Ocean11 0 Posted May 16, 2003 Share Posted May 16, 2003 There's not much point in discussing this with a great deal of seriousness, I agree. But as for the motivation aspect, I don't agree that the motivation to start skiing has always been 'fun'. Maybe it is now. But the motivation for a lot of people has been the jet-set life-style status or class, the apres-ski etc. This is reflected in things like the anal-retentive emphasis on 'form', and nonsense like the pompously named 'Alpine Code'. In contrast, the roots of boarding was not really skis but the 'snurfer' which is a much less serious and nose-in-the-air sort of thing than skiing. I have the feeling that the 'snurfer' (snow surfer) spirit of just dicking about in the snow and having a laugh is the motivation of most snowboarders. That's not to say things haven't changed at all, but I think in general 'the Management' have a lot of contempt for that and still don't want to 'sink to that level'. Link to post Share on other sites
Fattwins 0 Posted May 17, 2003 Share Posted May 17, 2003 Ocean I think your touting the European view there. I started sking at places that didnt have a beer barn within 10 minutes drive. I do remember hanging with this cool boarder friend of mine in the bar many times. I watched this guy stomp a 20 foot 50 50 log slide in the middle of a full speed run 6 years ago. dude was just crazy good. That said we never talked about what he did or I did, we shot the shit about how much pow and the amount of speed we honked all day. Link to post Share on other sites
Ocean11 0 Posted May 17, 2003 Share Posted May 17, 2003 But wouldn't it be true to say that the roots of skiing is European, while the roots of boarding is American? And the Japanese are keen to emulate the European ski atmosphere, albeit without any of the substance. Link to post Share on other sites
snobee 0 Posted May 17, 2003 Share Posted May 17, 2003 0=11 - I agree with those basic sentiments, however the ancient origins and the modern counterpart may share little in common for many. Snowsports will always appear a little elitist coz you need heaps of money. Throwing baskets is an admirable past-time and cheap. I had a discussion a while back with a British friend who decried the game of cricket as pompous and elitist. Especially irking him was how it wrapped itself around the old school establishment system. I had a difficult time trying to convince him, that growing up in the back-blocks in Australia, s****, classism and snobbery didn't enter the equation. No gin and tonics or cucumber sandwiches at any apres-match events. Plenty of beer and yobs though. Cricket's origins and the Autralian version reflect differing cultural attitudes, as I suspect is generally the case with skiing. The hallowed chalets of the Continental Alps never cross(ed) my mind when I'm sliding & grinning. Link to post Share on other sites
Fattwins 0 Posted May 17, 2003 Share Posted May 17, 2003 How many European apres ski bars have you seen. If you know of any please tell me. After a good day of sking at Happo there are not many good places to whined down. An onsen just knocks you out. I dont care about what ojisan or obasans think. let them think snowboarding is dangerous they are not open minded anyways. We have got to teach the young kids manners too though. Some of the young riders/skiers are just phrats. Link to post Share on other sites
barok 0 Posted May 18, 2003 Share Posted May 18, 2003 I agree with Ocean 11 that the motivations are different. The snobbish, elitist, we own the mountain, attitude is present in North America as well as Europe. I spent a season in Colorado as a skier in 1993, and I had alot of respect for the boarders, whose attitudes were way more hardcore than the skiers that I knew. Early season, there were way more of them than skiers, same with late season. They were up earlier in the day, and they hit terrain that the skiers didn`t. Judging by their clothes and cars, they didn`t have nearly as much money as the skiers either. But of course, they caught alot of flack from skiers. Back then I heard so many skier vs. snowboarder stories, it got on my nerves. Judging by the stickers on their rides, I think that most of these guys and gals were skateboarders and not skiers in their former lives. I also think it`s hillarious how you have these skiers-only mountains (Aspen, Keystone) suddenly cave in to the numbers and embrace snowboarding like they were down with it all along. Give me a break. All of that said, some of the people I ripped the hardest with (Fattwins, Dane, Zwelgen, etc. were skiers) It`s no big deal when you are having fun on the mountain with like minded people. So yeah, in with the new skiers and out with the old, I say. One big happy family is a welcome idea. Link to post Share on other sites
brit-gob 9 Posted May 19, 2003 Share Posted May 19, 2003 All part of 1 big happy family. With a few exceptions of course Link to post Share on other sites
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